Caixin: China Blocking Crypto Exchanges on Social Media

Chinese regulators are reportedly blocking social media accounts held by cryptocurrency exchanges that still offer services in the country.

According to a report by Caixin today, authorities have shut down some exchanges’ channels on China’s dominant social messaging app, WeChat.

In one example, the official account of OKEx on WeChat has been blocked, while links to all previous content are now merely showing a notification that reads:

“The platform may have violated relevant laws and regulations after being reviewed per users’ complaints. The account is currently blocked and content is not available.”

While the company has apparently denied interference by regulators, Caixin said it has confirmed that the WeChat censorship is a result of tightened official oversight on platforms that still offer cryptocurrency services to Chinese investors.

As reported by CoinDesk, following the ban on initial coin offerings (ICO) by the People’s Bank of China in September, OKCoin, once a major cryptocurrency exchange based in China, moved its crypto-to-crypto trading platform OKEx overseas.

Since it still offers services for Chinese investors, its official account on WeChat had become a major communication channel for the distribution of trading information among users.

So far, though, Huobi.com, which also has an overseas trading platform available in mainland China, still remains functional on WeChat.

The Caixin report adds that regulators are also looking to urge law enforcement agencies to further block the IP addresses of overseas crypto exchanges. Drawing the authorities’ attention is that, by listing new ICO tokens, exchanges are flouting the ban on offering ICOs to domestic investors.

The leader in blockchain news, CoinDesk is a media outlet that strives for the highest journalistic standards and abides by a strict set of editorial policies. CoinDesk is an independent operating subsidiary of Digital Currency Group, which invests in cryptocurrencies and blockchain startups.